A Hawthorn great has cautioned his former club over its trade plans.
Plus Essendon has been urged to make a hard captain call, and more Tassie blowback to the Giants boss’ “disrespectful” and “arrogant” comments. More below in AFL Daily!
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‘DON’T WANT TO UPSET THE CULTURE’: CAUTION OVER HAWKS TRADE PLANS
Hawthorn legend Jordan Lewis has cautioned his former club that signing Ben King could disrupt its culture as the Hawks also look to lock away Mitch Lewis.
Lewis is coming off a season-best five goal performance against Richmond to take his season tally to 30 majors from a career-best 18 games after a wretched run of injury since being drafted in 2016.
There’s been talk that if the Hawks do in fact land Suns free agent King on a lucrative deal, that could cause Lewis to depart Hawthorn.
The 27-year old forward held off signing an extension put to him by the Hawks amid interest from Collingwood.
However Hawks coach Sam Mitchell said there was optimism within the four walls that Lewis’ contract talks were moving in the right direction.
“My understanding of the future side of things, is list management tells me it’s going OK,” Mitchell said on Fox Footy’s AFL 360.
“Absolutely (we’re dead set on keeping him), he’s an important player for us. He’s never played more than 15 games in a season.
“So, rightly, at the start of the year he was like: ‘I want to make sure I can play this game, play the full season and prove my body is up to it’. And he’s well and truly done that.”
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – MAY 19: Mitch Lewis of the Hawks talks to Sam Mitchell, Senior Coach of the Hawks during a Hawthorn Hawks AFL training session at Kennedy Community Centre on May 19, 2026 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)Source: FOX SPORTS
Asked if Hawthorn had put its best offer to Lewis, Mitchell said: “I’ll be honest. I don’t get involved in the nitty gritty details.
“All I know is, ‘do you need my help? Do I need to get involved here?’ — and they say yes or no.
“I think the forwards had a bit of a chat about it last week and started getting into him and all those types of things, but I think it’s going okay.”
Mitchell was hopeful that list management would “maybe not ever” need to him to step in.
“I don’t normally get involved in the contract side of things. I’ll leave that with them,” he added.
Lewis’ form prompted Lions great Jonathan Brown to question whether they need King.
Lewis has averaged 12.7 disposals, 5.4 marks, 1.3 contested marks and kicked 30 goals.
Meanwhile King, who’s ranked second in the Coleman Medal with 48 majors, has averaged 7.4 disposals, 3.6 marks and 0.9 contested mark and would come on a much bigger pay packet.
Ash fined over mouthing off umpire | 00:34
“There’s been plenty of talk about Ben King coming to Hawthorn. Do you need both?,” Brown posed on On the Couch.
Lewis suggested the looming arrival of King on a big-money deal could put the Hawks in a delicate situation.
“There’s certain decisions on positions I think you need to canvas that idea with the playing group. That’s a difficult thing to do, because you can go to too many players and get too many opinions,” he said.
“But it’s a key forward coming in who will be on more money than any other key forward in that. You’ve got a key forward there (Lewis) that is performing well and well liked within the playing group.
“So the one thing you don’t want to do is bring in a player for a position you already have on more money that upsets the culture of the football club.
“It’s not as easy as saying who would rather. Those decisions are multifaceted.
“I don’t think you can have Ben King and keep Mitch Lewis. But they may do it.”
Richmond champion Jack Riewoldt thinks the bigger talking point is what the potential arrival of King could mean for Gunston’s future.
That comes despite a career-best season from Gunston, 34, with 40 goals from 12 games.
“It’s not so much Lewis and King, it’s Gunston and King, surely?,” Brown posed.
“You think about the roles they play. Lewis and King can survive in the same forward line with Chol. That’s working now.
“Because King is a taller version of Gunston. If Ben King goes to Hawthorn, I would fear where that puts Jack Gunston.”
‘DISRESPECTFUL, ARROGANT’: GREAT HITS BACK AT GIANTS DIG
Outgoing Giants chief executive Dave Matthews has certainly caused a stir among the Tasmanian contingent.
Matthews over the weekend said Tasmania was “not a super attractive proposition” for players to join and the state was “a nice place to visit, but I don’t think it’s an unbelievable place to have a career and live.”
The comments came as GWS battles to retain Tom Green, who’s out of contract next season and thought to be one of the Devils’ top targets.
New Tassie coach Ken Hinkley and Devils CEO Brendon Gale already hit back at Matthews’ remarks.
And Tigers champion and proud Tasmanian Jack Riewoldt also got riled up over it.
“Obviously I’m Tasmanian, but but I found these comments completely in poor taste,” Jack Riewoldt said on Fox Footy’s On The Couch.
“I think they’re disrespectful, and I think they’re actually quite arrogant the comments that have been made by the outgoing CEO at the GWS Giants.
“The incoming (GWS) CEO (James Avery) is the ex-CEO of Stadiums Tasmania, a Tasmanian, and it feels like it’s a it’s a hand grenade that’s been lobbed into the GWS camp now that he will walk away from in the not too distant future and leave them to pick up the pieces of what is a pretty alarming comment.”
Hawthorn legend Jordan Lewis agreed it was a “really arrogant comment to make” and was surprised Matthews, as the CEO of an expansion club and former AFL head of game development, went there.
BOMBERS URGED TO MAKE ‘TOUGH DECISION’ ON SKIPPER
Essendon has been urged to make a “tough decision” and change captains from Andy McGrath to Sam Durham under its new coach for 2027.
Durham has been the AFL’s No. 13 rated player since Round 13 in a brilliant run of form despite the Bombers’ woes.
The 25-year old was among Essendon’s best to lead the team upset win over GWS, gathering 25 disposals (13 contested) with seven clearances.
It spurred Hawks great Jordan Lewis to suggest Durham should take over as captain from Andy McGrath, who just replaced Zach Merrett in the role this season.
Buckley admits disappointment | 01:22
“The coach that comes in has got difficult decision on who he thinks will be captain of this football club,” Lewis said on Fox Footy’s On the Couch.
“I don’t think it’s a lay down misère that McGrath will be captain.
“The clear choice for me would be Durham. The way he played yesterday, the inspirational stuff he does on the field, the contest, the unwillingness to give up the ball.
“I just think from the outside looking in, and yes, I don’t know how he conducts himself inside the football club. But for me, if you want to change the identity of your football club and you want to get back to week in, week out, ‘gritty not pretty’, he is your man to lead this club forward.”
While removing McGrath after one year would be bold, Lewis says the Bombers needs to make hard calls in the club’s best interests.
“You’ve got make tough decisions. They made what I thought was tough decisions with selection,” he added.
“Why would you go another one year, two years, maybe three years potentially and have a captain who is well liked and performs a role in defence. But not in and around the ball like Sam Durham.
“He is the one for me who is the obvious choice to lead this club forward.”